Everyone in the cabin was stunned. They had no idea where Li Qiang had gotten the money from. He was naked, so the money must have appeared out of thin air.
The commander in the forward cabin rushed over and immediately saw four crew members pointing Spine-Piercing Spear at Li Qiang. He shouted, "Put down your guns! Put down your guns!"
The four crew members hesitated, and one of them said, "He... he's going to hurt someone... what should we do?"
The commander yelled, "Idiots! If he wanted to hurt you, he would have done it already! A bunch of idiots!"
Li Qiang couldn't help but admire him greatly; he truly deserved to be a commander, his mind was so clear. Li Qiang nodded to him, then suddenly turned around, and four Spine-Piercing Spear appeared in his hands. The people in the cabin stirred; no one had seen clearly, only a blur before their eyes, and four guns were in this strange man's hands. The four crew members stared blankly at his hands, unable to react for a moment.
The commander walked up to Li Qiang, bowed, and said, "I apologize. I am the commander, Zegu. Please forgive my rudeness earlier. You are the first person to request a boat ride in the Sea of Wronged Souls, so it's understandable that you were a bit surprised."
His words were very humble. As soon as Li Qiang entered the cabin, he realized that with the strength the other party had shown, they were no match for him if they wanted to harm the Arrow Boat. Therefore, he decided that no matter whether Li Qiang was human or monster, the most important thing was to keep him calm.
Li Qiang tossed the Spine-Piercing Spear back to the crew member and laughed, " Zegu, you're a smart man. Don't worry, I just wanted to ride on your Arrow Boat. Hey, I got lost. Hmm, here's some money for you, consider it my ticket to board." He stuffed a wad of cash into Zegu's pocket.
The people on the Arrow Boat were stunned by Li Qiang's words. Getting lost in the Sea of Wronged Souls? What a joke!
Zegu took out the money from his pocket and counted it slightly. Li Qiang had given him about three times more. Arrow Boat the sea by arrow boat usually cost 15,000 coins. If the commander of the Arrow Boat was an experienced veteran, the price would be even higher, with the cheapest costing around 10,000 coins. That was usually because the Arrow Boat was relatively old or the commander was less experienced.
Zegu was an experienced and skilled man. His Arrow Boat cost 20,000 coins per person, with goods priced separately. He kept only 15,000 coins, handing over the excess. "Alright, I'll take it. This is the extra money back to you."
Li Qiang waved his hand and said, "You don't need to return the extra. Give it to the crew as compensation for their shock. Also, could you please give me a piece of clothing to wear?" He really didn't have any local clothes in his bracelet.
Zegu was slightly taken aback, but quickly agreed. Several crew members looked delighted. Two of them were particularly quick-witted and immediately ran to the rear cabin, bringing Li Qiang a white soft leather robe and a wide blue leather waist protector.
After donning white robes and fastening their belts, Li Qiang casually gave each of them a thousand coins, for which they thanked him profusely. The merchants and other crew members in the cabin were all envious, finding this strange man to be incredibly generous.
Zegu glanced around the cabin, feeling slightly troubled, as there were no empty berths. He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Well... you should rest in the crew's cabin."
Before Li Qiang could answer, the crew member who had taken the fur coat earlier hurriedly said, "Come stay in my cabin..." The other crew members immediately became anxious and started arguing, inviting Li Qiang to rest in their berths.
Li Qiang knew this was all thanks to the power of money. He laughed and said, "No problem, I'll visit each of your berths." This made the crew very happy, and some crew members had already brought out fruit and snacks for them.
Zegu, being the commander, was still somewhat arrogant. He said, "In that case, please do as you please. I need to go to the forward cabin to command the Arrow Boat." He disdained the obsequious attitude of the crew members for money, but he couldn't very well reprimand them, so he made an excuse and left in a hurry.
A crew member warmly invited Li Qiang to the rear cabin. Li Qiang didn't need to rest, but seeing how enthusiastic the crew members were, even though he knew they were only interested in the money, he still followed them to the rear cabin.
The rear cabin, where cargo and crew were stored, was the worst place on the entire Arrow Boat. It was basically completely enclosed. As soon as Li Qiang entered, he smelled a fishy, rancid, and rotten stench. He immediately stopped breathing and replaced it with the breathing of his Nascent Soul.
Some crew members noticed Li Qiang's expression. He walked in calmly, without even frowning, looking relaxed and cheerful, as if the crew cabin was a clean and pleasant place.
The leading crew member shouted, "Hey... men, come and meet this old man!"
"Whoosh!" A dozen or so crew members emerged from the pigeonhole-like bunks, all smiling broadly as they gathered around.
Li Qiang was puzzled. "Old Guanzi? What is that?" He didn't understand what it meant, but all the crew members did. "Old Guanzi" meant "sucker." When a sucker came to their door, the crew members were overjoyed and immediately surrounded Li Qiang.
The crew member who had led the way regretted his words as soon as he finished speaking. Although Li Qiang was an old hand, he was a very formidable one. Seeing everyone recklessly crowding around, he was quick-witted enough to say, "This brother just boarded the ship." As soon as he finished speaking, the crew members scattered in a flash.
One of the crew members yelled, "Damn it, don't scare us! Getting on board at this hour... are you seeing things?"
Li Qiang laughed, "Hehe, he's right. I just boarded the Arrow Boat, and it's an honor to meet you all." This startled the crew, who scattered in all directions. No wonder; boarding a ship in the Sea of Wronged Souls meant they were either demons or monsters, certainly not human.
Only the four crew members who brought Li Qiang remained still. Regardless of whether Li Qiang was a ghost or not, they all saw that Li Qiang was very generous and did not harm anyone.
Li Qiang found an empty bunk, plopped down, crossed his legs, closed his eyes to rest, and ignored everyone else.
The crew members huddled together, whispering about Li Qiang.
After hearing the accounts from several crew members, everyone learned that this mysterious man was actually very wealthy and extremely generous, and seemed quite friendly. They couldn't help but regret not having tried to curry favor with him and get some money to spend.
The crew slowly approached Li Qiang, surrounding him completely and looking at him curiously. Li Qiang suddenly opened his eyes, startling the crew members who shoved and pushed each other to retreat. Li Qiang couldn't help but burst into laughter.
The crew members were quite embarrassed by Li Qiang's laughter and didn't know what to do.
Li Qiang said kindly, "Everyone, come sit down. I have a few questions... Hmm, whoever can answer them well... a thousand coins!" He knew that to deal with these sailors, he had to pave the way with money and use money to dispel their fears. He showed a handful of black money cards, each containing a thousand coins.
The crowd immediately became excited. They knew that for a trip to the Sea of Wronged Souls, the highest earner would only be 10,000 coins, and the lowest would only be 3,000 or 4,000 coins. But answering Li Qiang's question would earn them 1,000 coins! Where else could they find such a good deal? Not to mention that Li Qiang didn't look like a monster at all, even if there really was a monster sitting there, they would still answer the question first.
"Who knows how long it takes to cross the Sea of Wronged Souls? Raise your hand to answer, I'll call on someone... who will answer?"
"Whoosh!" A chorus of hands went up.
Li Qiang pointed to a thin crew member. "You come here." He deliberately chose those crew members who looked to be of lower rank to answer, as a reason to give him some subsidies.
The crew member was overjoyed. "It'll be... it'll be... over a hundred days..."
Li Qiang mentally calculated that, according to the timeline in his hometown, it wasn't a short period. He sighed inwardly, not expecting the Sea of Wronged Souls to be so vast. He handed the man a black banknote.
"Could someone describe the journey across the Sea of Wronged Souls? Hmm... you answer."
The crew member immediately said, "Starting from Desperation Cape on the Tanbang Continent, we'll stop at three temporary supply and repair points along the way. They're all small islands; after the Wind of Fear subside, some people specialize in this business. We'll also pass through six or seven dangerous areas. We've already passed one, right outside Desperation Cape." Although he didn't go into much detail, Li Qiang understood the general meaning.
Li Qiang handed him a money card and asked, "Are there any supply points that we absolutely must stop at? I mean... any that all boats must stop at...?"
The crew member pointed to replied, "Yes! Black Islet Reef..."
Li Qiang was overjoyed; he could finally meet up with Zhao Hao at Black Islet Reef. In his excitement, he placed the money card beside his bed and said with a smile, "You guys divide this money fairly, don't bully anyone... Consider it a small gift to everyone. Hope you can help each other out in the future!"
Everyone was overjoyed; this was like a windfall. They had inexplicably answered a few questions and received so much money. They were thrilled. They immediately changed how they addressed him, calling him "Big Brother "Li Qiang and giving him the best berth in the cabin. Several crew members even specially laid out their new leather cushions for him.
Li Qiang is a very easygoing person. He jokes and chats with everyone, and soon everyone forgets that he is an oddball who joined the group halfway through. They feel like he is an old friend.
When Zegu arrived, he was quite surprised to find that this strange man had become very familiar with his crew and even knew about his affairs.
Zegu said, "We're about to pass Pingliu Islet Reef. Everyone get ready. Hopefully, the raiders haven't arrived yet, otherwise, we'll all suffer a great loss." The crew members immediately tensed up and dispersed to prepare.
Li Qiang asked curiously, " Zegu, what is Pingliu Islet Reef? How come there are raiders here?"
Pingliu Islet Reef is a geomantically auspicious place in the Sea of Wronged Souls, a calmest sea surface after the Wind of Fear subside. Therefore, it is the first choice for raiders to plunder after setting sail. On other sea surfaces, even if raiders wanted to rob, it would be impossible, because they simply could not stop their ships.
There aren't many places to rob in the Sea of Wronged Souls. The Pingliu Islet Reef has the most opportunities. For other places, you'll have to rob supply points.
After hastily explaining, Zegu hurriedly walked towards the bow of the ship. Li Qiang, having once fought off a group of raiders in Fengnan City, followed along to see what was going on. To him, the raiders posed no threat whatsoever; witnessing the pirates of the Sea of Wronged Souls would be quite interesting.
Zehe noticed Li Qiang had followed him, hesitated for a moment, and swallowed his words. However, to his surprise, all the crew members greeted Li Qiang obsequiously, from the stern to the bow, with a series of greetings.
Zegu was truly astonished; he had no idea that Li Qiang's financial offensive had already demonstrated such immense power in such a short time.
Li Qiang greeted them all with a smile. Although he understood that these crew members were only there for the money, he was still very satisfied with the friendly atmosphere and felt quite good.
Upon reaching the bow of the ship, Zegu asked, "Is there any situation?"
One of the operators replied, "The sea is calm; we can't see anything."
Zegu pulled a small triangular disc from his pocket, examined it, and compared it to the large triangular control panel on the bow of the ship. He said, "If it's just a small group of raiders, we'll charge in... Sigh, if only we could spot them first."
Li Qiang suddenly remembered that he still had a telescope in his bracelet. He had bought several but never used them. He casually took one out and scanned around. Although it was a civilian-grade 7x telescope, it could still see very far.
A nearby operator asked curiously, "What's that thing, sir? It looks weird."
Li Qiang laughed, "This is... um... a treasure that can see very far." He didn't know how to use the word "telescope" for a moment. His words immediately caught Zegu's attention.
The operator shook his head in disbelief and laughed, "Brother, don't try to fool me. How could there possibly be such a treasure?"
Li Qiang didn't explain further, handing over the binoculars and saying, "See for yourself."
Before the operator could take it, Zegu snatched it from the side, held it up, and looked at it in the distance. "Hmm, eh... it's gotten smaller..."
Li Qiang couldn't help but laugh, "You've got it upside down. It should be like this; this is for adjusting the distance..."
Zegu quickly learned how to use it, becoming increasingly amazed and exclaiming in admiration. After looking at it for a while, he reluctantly returned it to Li Qiang, saying, "It's truly a wonderful treasure. Could you sell it to me...?"
Li Qiang laughed and said, "This treasure isn't for sale... but I'll give it to you..."
Zegu was so happy he couldn't help but scratch his head, still a little incredulous. "Really? Really giving it to me?"
He wasn't particularly interested in money, but this item was an absolute treasure in the Sea of Wronged Souls. Having it allowed him to detect danger in advance, and even a little more time to prepare could make a difference here, potentially separating life and death.
Li Qiang hung the binoculars around Zegu's neck and asked, "What did you use to navigate in the Sea of Wronged Souls? Hey, I got lost just now."
Zegu was no longer afraid of his halfway boarding the ship. He held the binoculars with obvious delight and said, "Thank you, brother." Without realizing it, he had started calling Li Qiang" brother" just like the other crew members. He then took out the small triangular compass he had been using earlier and said, "This is Dingxi Cape. As long as you point it at the Western Continent, it will glow at the pointed end. If you don't point it at the right angle, it won't glow. It's very easy to use, but you also need to use the compass map on the control panel. Hehe, you can't just go in a straight line."
Others can't go in a straight line and have to follow the prescribed route, but Li Qiang can, only he no longer needs to.
The operator grinned and asked Zegu for the binoculars; he wanted to see them too. Zegu carefully took them off his neck. "Be careful, I won't allow it if you break them."
Several operators immediately gathered around, each eager to see, marveling at the sight. One of them, holding binoculars, adjusted the zoom, then suddenly exclaimed, "I see... I see it... it's..."
Zegu was taken aback. "What did you see? Damn it, explain yourself clearly... Don't just say half of what you mean..."
The operator handed the binoculars to Zegu and said, "They're raiders!"
Zegu hurriedly raised his binoculars to observe carefully. He shouted, "Notify all crew members to prepare weapons. Every cabin must be staffed. Those resting, get up immediately. We'll go around to the right. Be careful, everyone!"
Chaos erupted inside the Arrow Boat. Zegu personally steered the Arrow Boat to the right, but at a slow speed, and the red light of its defenses dimmed.
Zegu shouted, "Don't panic! We've seen raiders before. Lower your defenses to the minimum, and be careful the red light doesn't alert them."
One of the operators warned, "There are reefs on the right, be careful!"
Zegu said arrogantly, "I know, I'm very familiar with this place, everyone don't need to be afraid."
Li Qiang squinted. He could see very far without binoculars. On the calm sea, there were a few Little Hei that were hard to see if you weren't paying attention.
Zegu said, "Brother, it's alright. Please go back to your cabin and rest. We should be able to avoid it."
Li Qiang wasn't worried at all. If the looters were really so blind as to come here to rob, who knows who would be unlucky?
The Arrow Boat skimmed lightly across the sea, and gradually the dark spots disappeared from view. Zegu said he wasn't afraid, but he was still uneasy. He wiped the sweat from his face and said, "Let's wait outside the reefs until dark before we leave. They usually go back to Pingliu Islet Reef at night, and then we'll sneak over there."
Fortunately, the sea here is very calm, and the Arrow Boat can stop.
As darkness gradually fell, the Sea of Wronged Souls became unusually calm, completely devoid of the ferocity it displayed when emerging from the Desperation Cape, appearing remarkably tranquil and gentle. Although there was no moonlight, schools of bioluminescent creatures swam in the water, reflecting a shimmering silver light onto the surface, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene. The sound of water could be heard intermittently in the distance, and silvery waves could be seen rising and falling, as the sea creatures played and chased each other.
Li Qiang gazed at the sea view for a while before returning to his cabin. He dared not enter a meditative state, but instead held a crystal in his hand and began to replenish his True Essence Power. He carefully prevented himself from emitting light, slowly replenishing it.
The crew was mostly out at sea, and sailing at night was very dangerous; there were too many unknowns. Even an experienced commander like Zegu had to be extremely careful.
It was completely dark, but due to the bioluminescence reflected from the water, a little bit could still be seen on the sea surface.
Under the cover of night, the Arrow Boat quietly set off, rapidly advancing along the outer edge of the chaotic reefs. No one on board, including the merchants, dared to sleep; everyone was tense. The merchants were especially afraid; they had finally earned some money on the Tanbang Continent, and if they were stopped by raiders, the losses would be devastating.
The major groups of raiders here have an unwritten rule: they can only take one-third of the money and goods from the merchants at a time, and they cannot take everything. Moreover, once they have robbed a merchant, other raiders are not allowed to rob them again.
This wasn't because the raiders were showing mercy, but rather because once they had looted everything, there would be fewer and fewer merchants, and then there would be nothing left to rob. This was, in a way, the raiders' way of survival. Of course, there were also small groups of raiders who were extremely vicious, not only robbing but also killing.
Zegu's Arrow Boat was considered one of the best among its kind, rarely being robbed. He was a very alert person with extremely rich experience. The Arrow Boat had almost completely disarmed its defenses, and all the light-emitting devices on board had been extinguished. The sea breeze was blowing gently, and the people on the Arrow Boat looked out nervously. All around was silent, with only the soft "whoosh" of the waves.
Zegu stood at the bow of the boat, scanning the surroundings with his binoculars. Unfortunately, these were just ordinary binoculars; if they were military-grade low-light binoculars, he could have seen what was hidden not far away.
Just as the crew and merchants were secretly rejoicing at their impending escape, a deafening explosion rang out not far in front of the Arrow Boat, throwing the crew into immediate chaos. Seven or eight oddly shaped ships came hurtling towards them. A crew member shouted, "The raiders are here!" His voice was distorted as he yelled.
Zegu roared, "Don't panic! Raise the defensive barrier and accelerate!" The Arrow Boat trembled slightly, its red light blazing brightly, and it shot forward like an arrow released from a bow. The merchants were all ashen-faced, praying to the gods that they wouldn't be caught by the raiders. The crew members hurriedly set up their weapons, knowing it was useless and only meant to bolster their courage.
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"
Three consecutive energy projectiles from the hook cannons exploded in front of the Arrow Boat, the warning clear. Suddenly, another explosion rang out in the distance, revealing that not only their Arrow Boat, but two other Arrow Boat were also trying to slip past under the cover of night. A large number of raiders appeared in the distance. Zegu trembled with rage; he knew they had fallen right into a trap set by the raiders. With a long sigh, he ordered, "Stop! Deactivate the defensive barrier... I'm so sorry, everyone!"
Zegu knew that if they resisted, their fate would be dire; not only would everything be looted, but they would also perish. This was an unwritten rule among the raiders.
Li Qiang stood up after the first cannonball exploded. He had fully recovered, stretched, and muttered to himself, "Hey... more excitement to come."